MESSAGES FROM THE ANCESTOR WORLD

... picking up on the subject of tracing ancestral influences in Tarot cards and Oracle cards: On August 2nd, members of the crowd at the Triple Goddess used a variety of Tarot and other decks to pose the request, "Please show me a decisive moment from my ancestors' lives." We were not specifying any particular ancestors, (though those who were using Joules Taylor's "Celtic Messages" Oracle and a "Druids' Tarot" [I don't know which one] were assuming general Celtic ancestors), but rather letting the cards decide which meaningful glimpses of ancestral energies and activities to show us at this time, on this day. Naturally, our numerous lines of ancestors experienced numerous decisive events in their long and varied histories, but here we were leaving it to the cards to show us one special experience that went into the making of who we are, and that would give us something inspiring for whatever challenges we're meeting today. Two of our participants were sisters, so although they drew different cards, each could also take meaning from the other's reading.

When scrutinizing a card spread for clues about ancestors, there are a number of things to consider. For example, readings that show group scenes may portray a clan or tribe, while strong personality cards may portray particularly influential individuals. For example, two different persons drew the Boudica card (depicting the warrior queen of the Iceni portrayed in "Celtic Messages"). In the context of these readings, it probably pointed to some very strong matriarch, who may well have been Boudica herself. In the way that the cards speak to multiple concerns, this may also be a call for these women to take on leadership roles. The cards can also reveal things about ancestral occupations, (with an implication that we can reactivate the related ancestral skills), so the person whose central card was the Magician likely was looking at a magician ancestor, while the person who got "Taliesin" likely had a bardic ancestor whose poetic inspirations she can tap into.

Some other things to look for are potential heraldic or totemic images. Our ancestors took these symbols very seriously, and we can find inspiration in them today. One person, who used Ciro Marchetti's "Legacy of the Divine" Tarot got the Knight of Wands as one of her cards. Now that I've had time to scrutinize that card, I see it has mirrored images of red dragons. As the red dragon is best known as the emblem of Wales, this may point to Welsh ancestry, (though others could have this as their totem, the red dragon also being a symbol of the Rhineland, and probably of other localities and families, as the dragon is a common heraldic symbol). By the way, we all have ancestors from more countries than we are aware of, as modern DNA testing services have been revealing. My memory has faded, but I think that one of the sisters pulled "the owl" and the other pulled "the dove," (again, from "Celtic Messages"), so both of them would have those totems in their family background, but for one, there may be currently more of a need for the owl's qualities of discretion, while for the other, the dove's love-bringing gifts may be more immanent.

Generally, any of the symbols that we pull out of these readings can be incorporated into our lives as a means of empowerment. Also, if a reading has a negative cast, you can send healing energy to your ancestors, as well as present family members, by turning it into a Tarot spell. Alter your family's collective dream of reality by adding some positive cards to the layout, then visualize these new energies transforming your family's belief system. For example, one individual, using the "Legacy" Tarot, got the "8 of Wands," the "9 of Swords," and the "Hermit," (if my notes from memory serve me correctly). This could indicate that an ancestor, beset by worries, became a wanderer in search of solutions, and this may have become something of a family trait. If she wants to reshape some of these energies, she could turn this into a Tarot spell by placing the "9 of Wands" on top of the "9 of Swords." By transforming Swords to Wands, we turn problems into projects. With the Legacy deck, this creates a very interesting graphic juxtaposition, because the man in the "9 of Wands" is holding a glowing crystal-tipped wand up to the right border of the picture space, while the Hermit holds a glowing crystal-tipped want to the left border. The two wands almost touch, suggesting the passing of a torch. Also, the progression from the "8 of Wands" to the "9 of Wands" shows a build-up of energies, and as the Hermit's number is "9," the mystical potentials within the number 9 are all the more highlighted.

For those of you who have been able to attend these sessions, if you can reproduce your readings at home, you can pull a lot more imagery out of them. It's helpful if you have the same deck you tried out at the shop, but it's also very edifying to reproduce your readings using different decks, to see what additional images pop out.

By the way, I apologize for taking so long to comment on the past session. I am only able to write on alternate weekends, because my other weekends are entirely given over to caring for my father.